Moscow, Aug 30: A Russian nuclear-powered K-159 submarine sank in the Barents Sea this morning, killing at least two of the 10-member crew, the defence ministry said. The submarine's nuclear reactor was shut down at the time the vessel sank about 4 am (7:30 IST) about three nautical miles northwest of Kildin Island, the defence ministry said. No weapons were aboard the sub, the ministry confirmed.
One sailor has been rescued, the bodies of two dead crew members were found and the fate of seven others were unknown, the ministry said. On August 12, 2000, an explosion shook the Kursk nuclear submarine during exercises, sending the vessel to the Barents Sea floor. All 118 men on board were killed.
The K-159 had been decomissioned on July 16, 1989. Just two days ago, August 28, the sub was being towed on four floating hulls from its base in the town of Gremikha to a plant in the town of Polarnye to be scrapped.
The hulls were ripped off the towed sub last night during a fierce storm and the submarine sank in waters 170 meters deep, the ministry confirmed.
Russian President Vladimir Putin was in Sardinia for meetings with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. It was unclear whether he had been informed of the sub's sinking. Bureau Report